Teen Titans Halloween Chiller 2014
by calicoToones
Summary: Final chapter: All the suspense we can manage, some romance, and a little Alfred Hitchcock. [Story Summary: As they deal with relationship difficulties, the Titans find something evil has invaded their tower - A Stephen King flavored Halloween story]
1. Visitors

**Teen Titans Halloween Chiller 2014**

[I don't own Teen Titans.]

Starfire was asleep in her room, her head hanging over the foot of her bed, as that was the most comfortable for her. Silkie snuggled next to her. Both were awakened by the beeping of her communicator on the nightstand next to her head.

"Starfire? It's me," Raven said over the speaker. "Uh, I'm outside your door. Can I come in?"

Her hand fumbled around until she grasped the communicator. "Yes," she said, forcing her eyes open and pressing the remote to open the door.

"I'm really sorry, Starfire," Raven said as the door closed behind her. "I hate to bother you. I should be able to handle this…" Raven looked tired, as though she had been avoiding sleep for as long as possible.

Starfire got up and put her arm around her. "It is okay…You had the dream again?"

"Yes."

"About the man of shadows burying the box outside?"

"Yes…and I saw what was in it…" Her eyes were preparing to release tears and her lip was quivering.

"Hush," Starfire said gently. "Would you like to sleep in the bed?"

Raven shook her head, and Starfire led her over to the comfortable chair and gave her a small blanket.

"I don't know what is wrong with me…I don't want to depend on anyone else…but I just can't be alone right now."

Starfire stroked her hair. "Raven, you are never alone. We are all here for you. Beast Boy said-"

"I don't want to talk about him."

"Would you like me to sit up with you?"

"No, you go back to sleep. I'll just read for a while."

She opened the book that she had brought, and Starfire lay back down with Silkie. After a while, Raven heard both of them snoring, but she remained awake for a long time.

.

.

The next morning, Beast Boy and Cyborg were having a video chat with Argent on the big screen in the common room. BB was wearing a new bathing suit.

"So you got the togs and sunnies I sent?" Argent asked in her New Zealand accent.

"Right here!" he said, standing up to model the outfit and he put on the sunglasses.

"Let's have a look at the bum then," she said with a naughty smile.

"Um, there aren't really any homeless people around the tower…"

"Choice, love!" she laughed. "No, turn 'round."

He did so, and she nodded appreciatively.

"And you blokes promise that you'll show a girl a good time? It's not all going to be training, eh?"

"Oh, we promise," Cyborg said. "Girl, you're gonna have the time of your life."

"Then I'll be seein' you next week, loves."

"Ora kia!" Beast Boy said proudly. "See, I said it backwards so it means 'goodbye'!"

She laughed. "Sweet as."

"Sweet as…what?"

She laughed even more, and blew him and Cyborg a kiss as she ended the transmission.

"Talking to your girlfriend?" Raven had silently entered the room, and didn't sound particularly pleasant.

"She's my **friend**," he replied. "She's your friend, too. And she's coming to visit in a week."

"I'm sure you'll have a lovely time," she said, walking to the kitchen.

"Yeah, I bet she will actually do things, and not just stay in her room all day and ignore me!" he called after her.

Cyborg was a little puzzled by the undertone of that exchange - even though Beast Boy and Raven had certainly clashed over the years - but he shrugged it off. After a moment, he said what was really on his mind.

"Tonight is movie night, and Control Freak has a pre-release cut of 'Terror Tuesday'!"

"Dude, I know! I can't wait."

"So we're just letting anybody come over now?" Raven asked, returning to the room.

"You know, it's Starfire's outreach program," Cyborg explained. "If we make an effort to be friendly to certain borderline criminals, they might permanently abandon crime. She convinced Robin to give it a try…"

"Plus, he's got the inside track on all the new movies and games! His blog is so popular, it can make or break a new release. So the studios give him sneak previews, and he's got one for us!" Beast Boy said.

Starfire entered. "Yes, I am glad he is not being the criminal. I would just prefer he not sit next to me. His hands tend to do the…wandering."

"Just show him a box of tampons. That will make him behave!"

"Classy remark, Beast Boy," Raven snarled. "Real mature."

"No, I'm not making that up! I read it on the internet. It was in some kind of a fan fiction story about us."

"People write stories about us?" Cyborg asked.

"They need to get a life," Raven monotoned.

Robin entered the common room carrying what looked like a postal package, wrapped in brown paper. "Does anyone know who dropped this off? It's way too early for the mail delivery."

No one knew, but it looked like a present, and Starfire was eager to open it.

Cyborg was more jaded. "Every time we get something like this it turns out to be something weird. Remember those puppets? Let me scan the box."

He did so. "Nothing. Seems like its just pieces of plastic."

Robin tore off the paper and opened it. It was a collection of hockey masks, each with one half black and one half brown. There were two eye holes, but they all noticed the uncomfortable resemblance to…Slade.

Robin read the attached letter, and summarized it for the rest of the team, "Sounds like a local company is manufacturing these, and wanted to get our endorsement."

"Not likely," Raven commented.

"Agreed," Robin nodded. "Cyborg, after the morning workout, let's take a look at the security camera recordings. I want to see who dropped this off, and why we didn't get an alert."

.

.

The day passed uneventfully and as evening came, all the Titans, except Raven, were again gathered in the common room, watching the boat cross the bay that was carrying Control Freak.

"What did you find out about that package?" Beast Boy asked.

"Nothing special," Cyborg replied. "It was just a very early delivery by UPS, that's why no alert sounded."

"But we did find something last night," Robin added. He pressed some buttons and the screen displayed night vision footage of the south lawn. For a second or so, there seemed to be a dark figure moving against the background. Then it was gone.

"Did you all see that?" Robin asked. "That shadowy figure has the same approximate biometrics as Slade: height matches, arm length approximately matches-"

"Um, what 'shadowy figure'?" Beast Boy asked.

"Robin, there's nothing there," Cyborg said patiently. "Like I said before, it's an artifact of the enhancement of the recording. There was no heat signature, no footprints in the ground, nothing…"

"Starfire, did you see someone?" Robin asked.

Uncomfortably put on the spot, Starfire paused for a moment. "Truly, I did not."

She hesitated further, not knowing if she would be breaking Raven's trust if she spoke of her dream. But it could be important. "Friend Raven has had the unpleasant dreams though-"

She was cut off by the alert announcing Control Freak had arrived.

Raven entered the room. "Looks like he's here…whoopee."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's note<strong>: Beast Boy's remark about Control Freak's aversion to feminine products may be because he read the fan fiction story 'Where No Man Has Gone Before' by Coeus._


	2. The Box

**Ch 2. The Box**

"Hello, Titans!" Control Freak shouted as Beast Boy opened the front door and he entered the tower lobby**. **

Beast Boy and Cyborg greeted him warmly, Robin and Starfire said hello with polite smiles, and Raven mumbled something.

He was dressed much as always, but his clothes were clean and so was his hair. He had discovered cologne. And he was prepared for a charm offensive, with gift wrapped presents for Starfire and Raven that he carried under his arm.

Both girls eyed him warily, but were forced to accept the gifts out of politeness. Raven received a small package, and Starfire received a larger one, which she immediately tore open. It was a collection of types of mustard from around the world, including those made with alcoholic spirits. He eyes lit up in astonished delight and she squealed.

Raven opened her present to reveal a rare book on the history of the occult in Europe. While she certainly didn't squeal, her eyes did sparkle and she smiled for several seconds before she recovered.

"Thank you," she said. "Thank you…very much."

The three boys exchanged puzzled glances as the girls led Control Freak to the elevator, and made small talk. Beast Boy gritted his teeth. Ever analytical, Robin had two thoughts as they all rode up to the common room: _He's up to something_, and _Why didn't I think of that gift?_

Cyborg and Beast Boy made popcorn and served drinks, and Control Freak loaded the movie.

"I made you some tea," Beast Boy said to Raven, as he headed back to the kitchen area to get it.

"I'll make it myself," she snapped, and went to the kitchen. Soon there were the sounds of a muffled argument.

"What's up with those two?" Robin whispered to Starfire. "You know, it seemed like for a couple months they were getting along a lot better, and now they're fighting worse than ever…"

"I do not know," she whispered back. "I had seen them sitting together at the shore a few times, and Raven even played the video games once, but now they do the avoiding…"

The movie was ready to start and everyone sat on the couch, with Beast Boy, Control Freak and Cyborg on one end, Starfire and Robin in the middle, and Raven at her own end.

Robin was thinking instead of paying attention to the movie. He wanted to use his communicator to access the tower security system. But he knew he shouldn't, or Star would think he wasn't participating. But he really wanted to.

He got up and pretended to go to the kitchen, as everyone else had their eyes glued to the screen. The masked killer was hiding under the bed, and the innocent blonde cheerleader was getting undressed. Robin watched a little of that, but then pulled out his communicator and began studying the security system recordings again.

"Robin? You are working again?"

"Huh?" He jerked his attention back to the present, to find Starfire standing next to him with her arms folded. Ten or fifteen minutes must have passed without him realizing.

He went back and sat down with her, but she made no attempt to have her hand available for him to hold, no matter how scary the movie got. And it did get scary.

When it was over, Control Freak was ecstatic. "What did I tell ya? Do I know how to pick 'em, or what?"

"Dude, I almost wet my pants!" That was Beast Boy's highest compliment, except perhaps to actually do it.

"Awesome movie," Cyborg concurred. "And, we have desert!" He went to the kitchen and returned with a pie.

"You didn't buy that from a gypsy in a dark alley, right?" Raven asked.

"Relax. Mother Mae-Eye isn't there any more. And I got this from the bakery on the next block. It's totally safe!"

The four Titans looked at him skeptically, while Control Freak only looked at the pie.

"I checked it carefully," Cyborg assured them. "And, besides, we had one last week, when y'all were too hungry to ask questions!"

There was no arguing with that logic, so they all took a slice.

"What did you think of the movie, Raven?" Robin asked, trying hard to sound casual.

Raven glanced up, with purple pie filling on her lips, to see every eye upon her- although Control Freak was possibly just staring at her chest.

"It was pretty good." She took another forkful of pie, but they were still staring.

"What? Yes, I was scared too, okay?"

Satisfied, Robin let the matter drop. Control Freak proved to be a good house guest, and when it was time to go, he gracefully said goodbye and left without doing anything inappropriate. Everyone felt it had been a good evening, and Starfire cracked open a mustard before bed.

.

.

The night passed without incident. No tentacled monsters created by Raven's suppressed fears, no inanimate objects animated my Control Freak's remote, no ladies with an overactive maternal instinct and a penchant for baking came to greet them.

A peaceful night. The calm before the storm.

Robin got up early and took the R-Cycle for a ride. He wanted to check out the company that manufactured those hockey masks. He found nothing interesting, though.

Just a small company with a questionable color scheme for one of their products.

On the way back, he had time to think. Classic rock and roll poured out of the speakers in his helmet. One of the best riding songs was Meatloaf's 'Bat Out of Hell' (even though it was about dying in a fiery crash). He revved the engine and sang along.

He also thought about the lyrics. _Starfire_ was the only thing in this rotten old world that was pure, and good and right. He didn't want to leave her "like a bat out of hell", he wanted her to be around forever. And he was blowing it. He was letting his obsessions grow again.

Well, he had to work hard. He didn't have any 'super' powers. Everything he did was training, preparation, planning. Innocent people died when he took his eye off the ball.

But he needed to strike the right balance. And he didn't need to **think **it again, he needed to **do** it. And he needed to tell her just how much she meant to him. Not just smile and kiss her and change the subject. Man up, and **say** it. Today.

.

.

Feeling pretty good, he got home and parked his bike in the garage. When he got up to the common room, he found the all four of his teammates standing around the sofa, arguing.

"We never should have brought it in here!" Starfire was yelling.

"It's locked up now. There's nothing to worry about," Cyborg insisted.

"What's going on here?"

"Beast Boy found something in the yard this morning," Cyborg began to explain.

"Let me tell him," Beast Boy interrupted. "You know how I'm a dog sometimes, right? Well, this morning I was out for my walk and I smelled something, something freshly buried. So I dug it up. It was this wooden box…"

"It looked like a small coffin," said Starfire.

"Anyway, I brought it inside and Cy pried it open…"

"And there was this grey plastic doll inside…" Cyborg said.

"I do not think it was a doll," Starfire said. "It looked like an infant, a child who was no longer alive…Not a human child, the head was shaped funny and it had the long front teeth…"

"It was a doll," Cyborg insisted. "My sensors detected no organic material. Probably a Halloween doll with nasty old Nosferatu teeth. I'd guess from a dentist's office, to scare kids who don't want to brush!"

"All I know is, it smelled like bones with marrow in them. Bones that had been buried for a few days. You guys know that smell?" Beast Boy said.

"Sure, Beast Boy. We all know what that smells like," Raven snarled. Until then, she had been silent and looking rather pale.

"Is this like your dream, Raven?" Starfire asked gently.

"No…Maybe…I don't know… I didn't want to look at it closely."

"What dream, Raven?" Robin asked.

"It's nothing. I don't want to talk about it."

"You need to tell us if it is something that could be important."

She glared at him, then at all of them. "Fine. For the past few nights I've had a dream about a man burying a box with something inside…except that it was in Azarath."

"What was inside?"

"The body of a young child…me."

They all stared at her, so she reluctantly continued. "You know Trigon needs me to exist in this world, right? So there was a plan in Azarath to kill me when I was young, and that would be the end of it."

"But that didn't happen!" Beast Boy said.

"What was your first clue, Sherlock?...I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"But…when we talked earlier…I had the idea you thought it could be a future child of _yours_," Starfire said, eyeing her cautiously.

"I don't know," she said as a single tear rolled down her cheek. "I really don't know."

"I'm sorry, Raven," Beast Boy said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

She pushed it off. "Sure you are."

"What the hell, Raven?"

"Where is this thing now?" Robin asked. "Let's see it."

"It's locked in a case in the Evidence Room," Cyborg replied.

They all walked to the Evidence room, with Starfire putting her arm around Raven's shoulders.

"It's disgusting," Beast Boy said. "It's got these yellow eyes and the body is all twisted and wrinkly…"

"Hold on, B," Cyborg interrupted. "The eyes were closed."

"When you put it inside the glass case, you bumped the box and the eyes opened, like a doll's eyes…"

"I told you it is a doll," Cyborg said.

They entered the room and walked over to a large glass covered case with the open wood box inside. As they got closer, they saw the box was empty except for some grey goo.

"What happened?" Cyborg cried as he lifted the unlocked glass lid. "I know we locked this!"

"It got out," Beast Boy said.


	3. Sweet Dreams, Beast Boy

**Ch 3. Beast Boy has a bad night**

They spent the day searching the tower from top to bottom. They were pretty good at searching it by now, but they didn't find anything. Standing in the ground floor lobby, they considered their next move.

"Raven, can you sense any kind of a presence?" Robin asked.

She closed her eyes and focused, but after a while she opened them again. "I can't sense anything…not even you, and you're standing right in front of me."

"Perhaps you need to rest?" Starfire offered.

"Yes. I'm going to my room."

"Star and Beast Boy, you guys go up to the control center," Robin said. "Cyborg, you and I will sweep through the garage and the basement one more time."

"What do you think?" Robin asked him, as they were walking into the basement.

"I don't know, man," Cyborg shrugged. "It doesn't seem like it could still be in the tower after all this."

"No, who do you think is responsible for it?"

"You're thinking Slade…?"

"Yep, I'm always thinking Slade. But this isn't his style…"

"Even though the dude seems cool now, I'm thinking Control Freak. He'd love something like this, and it might be only a gag."

"Agreed," Robin said. "But there is one other possibility that we should talk about…Raven."

"You think she's creating this somehow with her mind? Or do you think its Trigon?"

"I don't know, but something does seem to be wrong with her."

They finished their search and went up to the control room, where there were computer screens showing camera views of the outside (and now the inside hallways) of the tower.

When they entered, Starfire was sitting at the control panel and Beast Boy was in a chair looking out the window at a boat on the bay.

Starfire was just as competent as Robin and Cyborg at operating the equipment. Beast Boy could certainly manage, but he was, shall we say, less technically inclined in this sort of non-game related technology.

"The sensors are at the maximum sensitivity," she reported. "There is nothing."

"Could this all be some kind of a mind trick?" Beast Boy mused. "Remember how Slade did something with dust that messed up Robin? And Mother Mae-Eye put something in her pies that made us all trip out…"

"It's possible," Robin agreed. "But we know what those chemicals are now, and we don't detect any of them."

"Whatever that nasty thing was, there's no evidence that it's here now," Cyborg said. "If even a cockroach moves, we'll all get an alert. Let's take a break and fix some dinner."

"What are we going to do about tonight?" Starfire asked.

"What more can we do?" Robin replied. "Sleep outside? That is even less safe. We'll all double check our rooms are secure before we go to sleep. If we can survive an assault by hundreds of Slade's robots, this is no big deal."

They all nodded in agreement and then went to have some food and think about something else.

.

.

Beast Boy went to his room early, and was ready to go to sleep. But he was still worried about that thing, whatever it was, so he made sure the door was locked and he checked all the air vents. They each had grills that could be removed, but all were screwed on tight. He brushed his teeth and prepared to get into bed.

He had graduated from his bunk bed to a regular bed with a queen size mattress last year, but he still kept the bunk bed, mostly to store things on. Tonight, however, he cleared off the top bunk and decided to sleep there. Not that he was scared, but it just felt better to be high off the ground, just in case something came crawling across the floor in the night.

Especially something that looked like a mutated infant and smelled like it had been dead for days. And he didn't think it was a doll, despite what Cyborg said.

He was tired, but he didn't fall asleep right away. Raven entered his thoughts, but he wasn't going to think about her. He tried to think of something else. There had been a speed boat on the bay today, with three or four girls in bikinis. He imagined that he was alone in the tower and their boat had landed on the island.

Being a gentleman, he had of course invited them in. The tall blonde said that she was all dirty and sweaty and needed to take a shower. The question occurred to him: How did she get dirty out in a boat all day? Who cares, just go with it.

"I have a shower in my room," he said, and being a gentleman, he showed her the way.

The other girls followed, and decided that they were dirty too. Well, it was a big shower.

"Would you wash me?" the blonde asked. "Please?"

"No, wash me first," said the second blonde. She was strawberry blonde with freckles.

"No, wash me first!" said the third girl. She had grey tinted skin and purple hair…No, she did **not**. She was a beautiful girl from Latin America, with long brown hair, and dark skin and a birthmark on her…

But before he got to the good part of the fantasy, he was asleep…

.

.

At some point in the night he was dreaming.

He dreamed he heard a noise in his room.

It was a scraping noise. Like something crawling along on the floor, pushing some of his junk out of the way. He looked, but saw nothing in the dim room. He then walked around and checked each of the air vents with his flashlight. The one behind his desk was wide open. The screws had been taken out and were lying on the floor. Somehow he had forgotten to check it earlier.

He tried to think, tried to remember. Did he do that? Did he ever take off that grill? He didn't think so.

A dreamlike sense of panic filled him. Something might have gotten in here. He was going to have to search the room. Turn on the light and search the room.

He pressed the button for the lights, but none would come on. He could hear his heart beating louder and louder. The flashlight flickered and went out…

That was when he knew he was dreaming. Somehow he was awake inside his own dream. He was still lying in his bed. Whew! Probably none of those other things had happened.

He wanted to open his eyes, but it was so hard.

He heard a noise, and felt something pulling on the bottom end of his blanket.

_Something was climbing up the bed_.

No, there was nothing there. He lay very still. He felt nothing, he heard nothing.

_Something was moving along the far edge mattress toward his head_. He could feel the mattress deform slightly under the weight. Something was moving toward him as silently as possible.

He needed desperately to wake up. He needed to claw his way back to consciousness and look to see what was there. It was so hard.

In fact, he dreaded opening his eyes. What was he going to see? A hideous, misshapen grey head? A set of yellow eyes, long dead, but still staring out at him? Teeth, decaying and discolored, but yet razor sharp? Glistening with saliva? Teeth that were preparing to sink into his soft throat at that very moment?

He felt breath against his cheek, cold and rancid. It was right in front of his face.

He _had_ to wake up. **Right now**. A surge of panic swept though him, and he jolted to consciousness. His eyes snapped open.

_There was nothing there_.

He lifted his head up off the pillow to be sure.

There was nothing. Everything in the dark room looked exactly as he had left it. And he knew he had checked all the vents. They all were secure. As he was about to lie his head back down, there was the faint smell of marrow. He glanced over his shoulder toward the wall.

That was when he saw the two yellow eyes staring at him. Then a shape sprang forward in the darkness and teeth sunk into his throat.

.

.

Robin was pacing in his room. He had promised himself that he was going to talk to Starfire today, and this crisis had distracted him. There was always some crisis, and there always would be. And this wasn't even a crime, just a scare that they were probably overreacting to.

"Starfire, can I talk to you a second?" he said to himself in the mirror. "Hi Starfire, how are you? Can I talk to you for a second? There is something that I'd like to say…"

That was a good beginning. Now the hard part.

"I know things have been a little strained between us recently, and I know that it's probably my fault. No, it **is** my fault. It is my fault…Let me tell you how I feel about you."

No, that sounded funny. "Let me tell you how much you mean to me…Just let me tell you how much you mean to me..."

He frowned and reworded it to: "Just let me tell you how much I love you."

No, maybe he should first say, "I know you are the best thing that has ever happened to me."

Taking a deep breath, he backed up a couple sentences and started again, "I know it's my fault..but I also know you are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I just want to tell you how much I love you."

That was pretty good. But maybe say it while holding her? Kiss her first and then say, "I just want to tell you how much I love you." No, say it first and kiss her afterward.

His mind drifted off as he thought about kissing her. He thought about soft she felt. How her hair sparkled in the light, just like her name, just like _star fire_. She liked to have her hair stroked. In fact, she liked to be scratched on her head, especially behind her ears, like a cat (*).

Other people had remarked over the years how she seemed to have some catlike qualities, and he had discovered it was true. Mumbo had even once transformed her into a cat. And Robin was happy to have discovered a secret one.

Yet Robin had never owned a pet cat, and so he wondered what other things there were about cats she might like. But he did have one in-house resource: Beast Boy.

He recalled the scene:

"_You want me to turn into a cat so you can…pet me?" Beast Boy had asked, eyeing him warily._

_It took some convincing, but they were friends, and Beast Boy had done it. It went OK at first, but when Robin touched his stomach, he got a good scratch from some sharp claws. _

"_**Not**__ cool, bro," Beast Boy said as he reverted to human form and stomped out of the room, and Robin went for the first aid kit._

"I wonder if I should tell Starfire that story sometime?" he mused, then went back to rehearsing what he was going to say, imagining she was in his arms and he was running his hand through her long hair.

.

.

Starfire was asleep in her room. She lay on her back, with her head hanging over the foot of the circular bed, and her long hair dangling to the floor. She dreamed she was flying. Flying high in the sky, with the wind blowing her hair. Blowing her hair hard. Pulling it in fact.

Then she drifted back to consciousness, being a light sleeper. That didn't feel like the wind. Had something pulled her hair? No, probably not. She closed her eyes and was sinking down into sleep again.

She did feel something in her hair, stroking it the way Robin sometimes did. That was nice.

"Robin?" she murmured from her half dream.

* * *

><p>Author's notes: Relax, Beast Boy is still with us, and will appear in later chapters.<p>

*[For more elaboration on Starfire's potential cat like qualities, you may enjoy the story 'Bases' by fan fiction author Kryalla Orchid].


	4. Starfire and Robin

**4. Robin and Starfire**

A growing sense of unease made Starfire open her eyes. Robin wasn't there. Of course not, he wouldn't just sneak in without knocking. Her bedroom was dark and quiet.

But something had touched her hair.

With an involuntary gasp, she sat bolt upright. _Do not panic. It must just be the Silkie. Silkie must be walking around under the bed… I know it was not the deformed, sticky little hand that was more like a claw…I know it was not!_

Her temperature dropped ten degrees when she noticed Silkie was lying on the bed, and had just woken up too.

Starfire sat silently and looked and listened. No sounds. Nothing moved. She ran her hand through her hair…maybe it was a little bit wet. She did take a shower before bed.

Silkie seemed to be settling down again to sleep. He could sense if something was there, right?

She should grab her communicator and turn the lights on. Maybe call Robin.

That last thought made her pause. Yes, she would very much like to call Robin. But if she acted afraid in front of him, then the problems would start again. He would assign her to guard the back door when they fought Plasmus. He would order her to stick close to him and Cyborg if they fought Cinderblock. He would try to protect her.

She knew what he was doing, and she loved him for it, but it also irked her to no end. She was just as competent as she had always been, in fact, more so. So no acting afraid and no calling for help unless it was a real emergency. But it wouldn't hurt to turn on the lights.

Her communicator wasn't on the nightstand, just the empty bottle of mustard. That worried her, until she remembered it was on her dresser. No problem. Just walk over there and get it.

But what if there _was_ something under the bed? She'd put her foot down on the floor and little hands would reach out from the darkness and close around her ankle. As she screamed, she would be pulled under the bed…to face the Grishnik.

Growing up, that is what her sister Blackfire had told her. If she did not give Blackfire her dessert, the Grishnik would come for her. If she did not let her play with her favorite dolls (male warrior dolls), the Grishnik would get her at night. The Grishnik lived under the bed of little girls, and sometimes he would chew his way up through the mattress to get you. And what the Grishnik liked to do most was eat the tongue out of your mouth, especially if you had told on your older sister.

_I am not three years old any more! _she thought angrily. _I shall put my feet down on the floor_ _and walk right over there_. But she hesitated.

_Very well, I will fly over there. I do not need to do the flying, but why should I take the chance_?

She thought of flight. She felt the joy of flight fill her whole body. But she didn't rise at all. She stayed sitting firmly on her mattress. Something was wrong…she couldn't fly. She was doing everything right, but she wasn't moving.

That was when she felt a tug on the blanket, coming from the side of the bed. Something was climbing up. Carefully and slowly, something was climbing up the side of the bed.

Silkie was awake now, his little eyes wide open. His body went completely rigid.

Starfire summoned all her energy, and her eyes glowed bright green. When she thought she saw the top of a little grey head, she let lose with an eye blast. Two beams of green light shot from her eyes.

But it was not nearly as powerful as she had intended. It scorched her blanket and the edge of the bed, and made smoke, but that was it. Her powers were failing.

Then she heard a soft ripping sound, as if something was making a hole in the mattress. It was tunneling in, and was going to come up under her.

She leapt off the bed and landed over near the dresser, where she grabbed her communicator and switched on the room lights.

The room was empty. Silkie had also jumped off the bed. She grabbed a vase from the dresser to throw and circled the bed from a distance. She saw the burned hole in the blanket, with a trickle of smoke rising, but nothing else.

She still had to look under the bed, get down on her hands and knees and look under it. Cautiously, she went to the far side of the room, by the door and bent down.

It was dark under there, but she could still see through to the other side. It looked clear.

Had it tunneled into the mattress? That wouldn't be easy with all the metal springs. Was that just her imagination, spurred by remembering Blackfire's story? She hadn't actually **seen** anything. Maybe this was all her imagination. She could check for a hole in the mattress, but that would mean going very close, and she didn't like that idea.

She opened the door to the hallway, and set it to stay open. She would go look for someone else who might still be up and have them assist her.

As she stepped out into the hallway, Robin came around the corner with a determined look on his face.

"Robin!" she cried in relief.

"Hi, Star," he said. "I'm glad you're still up. There's something important I need to tell you."

"Uh…" she stammered.

He led her back into her room and shut the door.

"Uh, Robin…."

"No, Star," he insisted. "Let me say this first. I know what's been going on."

"You do?"

"Yes. I haven't been acting right with you. I've been getting too caught up in work and not taking the time off for you that I need to." He had dropped his prepared speech and was winging it.

"Robin, this is not really the time that is best…" She glanced nervously around the room.

He put his hand on her lips. "Please, Star. Let me finish. This is hard for me to say…You are the best thing that has ever happened to me in my life. I don't want to lose you."

"Robin…You are not going to lose me."

He stepped in and put his arms around her. She was still a little agitated, but he pressed his mouth to hers and soon they were fully involved in the kiss.

"Come sit with me on the bed," he said with a smile.

"No, Robin…We are **not** going to sit on the bed."

"What's wrong? Just come sit with me on the bed. I want to tell you how I feel." He walked over and sat on the foot of the bed, oblivious to the charred patch of blanket.

"Wait, Robin…"

An expression of hurt formed on his face. "You don't care about what I'm trying to say, do you?"

"Robin!" she shouted, then paused. "I care more than you can know. But I think that the thing might be something here in the room."

That broke him out of his single-mindedness. "Did you see it?"

"Well…no…but I think it was under the bed when I was sleeping. Could we please just search? And then I would very much like you to do the talking about the feelings…"

Robin pulled his fighting staff from his utility belt and expanded it. He also pulled out the R-flashlight and carefully shone it under the bed, then probed with his staff.

"There is nothing there," he concluded. They also walked around and looked under other pieces of furniture and in the bathroom and the closet. Despite the seriousness of the situation, a half smile came to his lips when he passed the decorative toilet seat that she had hanging on her wall by the window. Her alien taste was so quirky.

"Are you sure you weren't dreaming?" he asked gently as he took her hand and led her back over to the bed, where he sat down.

"I do not think so," she said. "And I am still not comfortable to sit on the bed."

"Star, there's nothing here! I'll prove it." He shrunk his staff to the size of a club and started to crawl under the bed.

"Robin!"

But he continued to crawl under and soon came out on the other side. "See?"

She breathed a sigh of relief, and they sat together on the bed. He looked into her eyes, and got back to the business at hand.

"I love you, Starfire. More than anything."

"Oh, Robin…"

They kissed for a long time. Finally, they had to break for air and were hugging when Starfire imagined that perhaps the bed was shaking a little.

"You are the _absolutely_ sure that you did not see anything under there?" she asked.

"Nothing," he said as he kissed her again. "There was just a hole where you must have somehow torn your mattress…"

"What?!" She jumped up and pulled him up by the arm.

"Star!" he protested.

At that moment the red alert alarms sounded and lights flashed.

"Everybody! Come to Level 5 right away!" Cyborg said over the intercom. "Beast Boy is hurt!"

Robin and Starfire ran out of the room.

* * *

><p>Author's note: The Grishnik is what "got Robin's tongue" in the episode <strong>Stranded<strong>.


	5. Questions but No Answers

**5. Questions and no Answers**

All the Titans converged in the hallway outside Beast Boy's room. He was slumped against the wall, but his eyes were open and saliva was trickling down from him open mouth. There were puncture wounds in his neck, such as a vampire might make, and his shirt was torn.

"Beast Boy!" Raven cried and ran over to kneel beside him.

He mumbled some nonsense and stared blankly ahead.

"Let's get him to the infirmary," Cyborg said. He lifted his friend in his arms and they all raced to the medical section.

Cyborg set him down on a bed, and began hooking up the monitoring equipment. Beast Boy had slipped out of consciousness.

"Raven, can you stabilize him while we try to figure out exactly what's wrong?" Robin asked.

"I'll try," she said as she pulled up a chair and sat next to him. "My powers feel so weak, though." She put her bare hands against his skin, then closed her eyes and focused on her task.

"My powers also are not functioning correctly," Starfire said. "I cannot fly. And my energy for starbolts is low."

"Whatever this thing is, it's still in the tower," Cyborg said, as he worked. "And it can move around without us being able to detect it."

"But what is it?" Robin paced restlessly. "Who sent it? What does it want?"

"His vital signs seem okay," Cyborg reported, looking at the monitor screens, which showed Beast Boy's heart rate, respiration and brain wave activity. "He's been traumatized and is in a state of shock. I'll draw a blood sample and check for toxins."

After Cyborg swabbed the bite for residue, Starfire cleaned it with gauze and antiseptic.

"Do you think it did the drinking of his blood?" She asked nervously.

Raven came out of her trance and opened her eyes. "That is as much as I can do. I don't feel any physical damage. He just needs to rest now." As a final thought, she touched the bite mark and it briefly appeared on her neck and then was healed on both of them. She slumped back in her chair.

"Raven," Robin asked, "What are your thoughts on this thing?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "It's not like anything that we've seen before."

"Do you think it could be Trigon?"

"He still wants to get to me," she agreed. "But whenever he is near, I draw power from him and get stronger, not weaker."

"I didn't want to say this," Robin said, "but you remember the movie we saw a couple years back, '_Wicked Scary'_? You somehow created monsters from your unconscious fears…"

"That would explain why you're powers are weak," Cyborg added. "You're using almost all your energy to maintain this thing."

"No!" She looked at them in shock. "I'm **not** doing this!...I mean, I don't see any way that I could be…Look, I know what happened back then, right? I know that if I have strong emotions and repress them, they can sometimes find another outlet via my powers. But I've grown a lot since then! I don't do that anymore."

"But what about your dream?" Cyborg asked.

"I didn't dream about mutant baby vampires! You might not believe this, but most of my dreams aren't about butterflies and rainbows. A lot of them are nightmares to some degree, but I don't tell you about them and they don't come true."

"I'm sorry to pry," Robin said. "I'm just trying to see if you have repressed fears that could somehow be manifesting themselves. Now Starfire said you possibly had a fear of having a child…" He looked around for Starfire to back him up, but didn't see her.

Raven shifted uncomfortably in her chair and Robin and Cyborg stood and looked at her.

"Yes, I have worried that someday, possibly, maybe, if I have a child, it might be similar to Trigon and be evil…I admit it, it scares me! But it's not like I'm having any thoughts of a child in the near future."

"You're sure?"

Her eyes flashed with anger. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I haven't even done the thing that makes babies! With the guys on this team, it's easy…."

She paused for a moment. "Sorry…but I don't like these personal questions."

"And, even if she is doing it," Cyborg mused, "how could Starfire's powers be affected?"

"Where is Starfire, anyway?" Robin asked, looking around. Then a disturbing realization hit him, and he went pale. "Silkie! I bet she went to her room to get Silkie...and that thing is probably in there!"

With his lightning quick reflexes, Robin bolted out the door.

"Robin!" Cyborg shouted. "Don't go alone!"

Cyborg and Raven were startled to hear a scratching sound at the far end of the infirmary, around the corner where they couldn't see. The sound of a seldom used door being forced open. Perhaps they weren't going to have to go looking for this thing, perhaps it had found them.

They heard the sound of water rushing though pipes, and then relaxed a little with the realization of what is was: a toilet had been flushed.

Starfire came around the corner, adjusting her skirt. She saw them staring at her.

"I am sorry. When I am scared, I have to make the pee…"

"Star, come on! Robin has gone to your room," Cyborg shouted. "Raven, stay with B!"

.

.

The door to Starfire's room wouldn't open, but Cyborg and Starfire together were strong enough to break it open. Silkie bolted out and ran down the corridor.

They rushed into the room in time to see a metal panel fusing itself back into the wall, leaving behind a torn piece of Robin's cape. Half of his broken staff lay on the floor.

"Robin!" Starfire screamed.

.

.

An hour later, the remaining team was assembled in the control room. The bank of monitors showed empty corridors on every level of the tower. Beast Boy was awake, but sat in a chair staring blankly forward. Starfire had been crying, but now she was intently focused on what Cyborg was saying.

"All right, we know what to do," Cyborg said. "It's moving around inside the walls, in crawlspaces that have been sealed ever since we built this tower. I've adjusted the sensor array to detect any vibration that could indicate motion in there. Now its time to go in after it."

"Don't worry, Starfire," Raven said, putting her hand on her shoulder. "Like I said earlier, I can sense Robin now. He's still alive."

"Can you sense the thing?" Cyborg asked.

"I sense some kind of a hunger, an all consuming hunger. That must be it."

"But you still can't sense its location?"

"No. I'd have to be closer."

"Then we are about to get close," he said, as he walked back to a heavy metal plate in the floor that he had already partially unbolted, and he removed the last bolt. He lifted the plate out to reveal a dark opening. "Get ready. You all know what to do."

Raven sat on the floor and crossed her legs in a meditative position. She closed her eyes

"No! I am coming with you to get Robin!" Starfire insisted.

"Star," Cyborg said gently, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You're powers aren't working, remember? I need you to stay here and operate the equipment. You're the best qualified."

Then, addressing everyone he said, "We've never lost anybody yet, and ain't about to now! We're a team, we know what to do. We work together and we do whatever it takes to get Robin back."

He stepped into the hole and and began climbing down. A black shadowy form emerged from Raven's body and settled around him, her soul-self.

Just before his head disappeared into the darkness, he reassured them, "Come on, y'all. There's never been a bad guy yet that we couldn't beat."

Then Raven's voice echoed in his mind. "Just be careful, Cyborg. There is always a first time."


	6. Raven and Cyborg

**6. Raven and Cyborg**

The dark shaft descended vertically through the center of the tower. It was barely wide enough for Cyborg to fit, but he nimbly climbed down among the fiber optic and power cables attached to the sides. At the base of every floor, a thin horizontal crawlspace stretched out in every direction, the floor being supported by a framework of metal posts and beams.

"Starfire, do you read me?" he whispered into his small shoulder microphone.

"Yes, Cyborg," she replied. "We have not lost the communications."

"Do you see anything on the sensors yet?"

"Just you, three floors below. Nothing else."

He shone his spotlight around in all directions. Nothing but cross beams, pipes and cables, and some dust that he was stirring up. Sweat trickled down his face, from both the physical exertion and nervousness.

"Damn, this place is creepy! And hot…And I swear if I see a big spider, I'm going to blast it," he radioed back. "Uh, don't tell BB that I said that."

Taking a deep breath, he climbed down another level. His left foot slipped from one of the regular protrusions in the wall that served as a ladder, and he started to fall until his hands gripped a pipe. A loose nut from the wall fell into the darkness below and he didn't hear it strike bottom. A safety rope would have been a good idea, but it would have only gotten caught on things when he left the main shaft.

"Raven?" he called out. He still wasn't quite sure how to talk to her disembodied soul-self.

"I'm here," her voice said.

"Do you sense anything?"

"Nothing I can pinpoint, but I'm feeling something that is getting stronger the deeper we go. Can you hear the voices?"

"What voices? You mean like Robin's voice?"

"No." She paused. "It's like hundreds of tiny voices whispering. It's hard to explain."

"Nothing can see you or get to you in this form, right?"

"That's right. Nothing ever has."

They reached the bottom of another floor and they examined the crawl spaces, Cyborg by using his lights and sensors, and Raven by branching off from him and circling around.

There was nothing on this one either. Cyborg continued climbing down, hesitating a moment as he felt the temperature dropping.

"Brrrr…Now its getting cold! Do you feel it, Raven?"

"No, Cyborg, I can't feel anything physical like that."

Cyborg checked his thermometer reading on his forearm. The temperature had dropped ten degrees.

"Do you see that light?" Raven's voice asked.

"It's as black as a tomb, Raven…Sorry, poor choice of words."

"That yellow glow. It is filling my field of vision. And you still don't hear the voices?"

"No."

"They're really becoming loud."

"We must be getting close. I'm going into this crawlspace."

He checked that his sonic cannon was fully charged, and shone the light around. His view was obstructed by a maze of air conditioning ducts, water pipes, and cross beams. The ceiling was so low that he had to lie on his stomach and crawl, the metal on his back gently scraping against the metal ceiling.

.

.

Back in the control room, Starfire watched the screen which displayed a 3 dimensional blueprint of the tower and a single glowing square showing Cyborg's location.

"You're watching Cyborg?" Beast Boy asked.

"Friend Beast Boy! How are you feeling?"

"Like I was run over by a truck." He rubbed his head and saw Raven sitting motionless on the floor in her lotus posture.

"The thing has taken Robin and Cyborg has gone into the structure of the tower to get him," she explained.

"Um, what are those other blips?"

Starfire looked back at the screen. Two other irregular lighted shapes had appeared in the general vicinity of Cyborg.

.

.

By this time Cyborg had crawled a long way in the space between the floors. He had just made it past a large obstruction, which was the one of the enclosed elevator shafts. A wide dark area lay in front of him. He glanced at his arm display. The temperature had now dropped 30 degrees.

Then he saw something partially hidden by a pipe in front of him. Something red and green.

"Cyborg! Cyborg!" Starfire ugently whispered. "I'm picking up another signal."

"I see something lying there. I think it's Robin..."

"Something is moving toward you!"

He quickly shone his light around in the darkness. Nothing but beams and cables, left over building materials, the elevator shaft…and he wasn't able to see in the direction of his feet.

"Raven, do you see anything?" he whispered.

"I can't see at all!" she said. "Everything is black except for that ball of yellow light. But I sense something is coming. Get out of here, Cyborg!"

"I'm not going without Robin."

He shone the light back to where he had seen Robin's uniform, but it was gone. Had something dragged it further behind the pipe?

In every direction Raven tried to look, there was the same image. Blackness and a yellow blur. A yellow blur which was separating into two pieces and focusing into something.

She watched in horror as the pieces became two glowing eyes. Eyes staring right into her. The whispering cacophony of voices converged into one.

"_I see you_," it said.

She felt some kind of tendrils wrapping around her soul-self and the invisible strand that ran from her to her physical body. It was intending to break it.

"Cyborg! It's wrapping around me. Get out of here!"

Starfire's anguished voice joined in. "Cyborg, it's coming right at you! Do something!"

"Where? Where?" he shouted as he desperately tried to turn in the small space to see down by his feet, and rapped the back of his head against the ceiling. He knew it was no doubt crawling straight for him, crawling on its hands and knees, grinning in the darkness. In any minute he'd feel the hands or the teeth…

"I can't stay!" Raven cried. Frantically her soul retreated back up the strand before it broke.

.

.

In the control room, Raven's eyes snapped open in a sense of panic.

The tower rumbled as Cyborg fired his sonic cannon in various directions. At first there were pauses, as if he was aiming and firing. Then the volleys came rapidly, as he desperately fired in all directions.

All the lights and monitor screens went black when he cut the main power cable. Then the sonic blasts stopped and there was only silence. Emergency battery powered lights flickered on.

"Cyborg!" Beast Boy screamed. "Cyborg! We've got to help him."

He ran for the open panel.

"No, Beast Boy!" Raven cried, and she and Starfire tried to grab him or block his path. He morphed into a bat and, eluding them, he dove down the dark shaft.

.

.

An hour later they found Beast Boy.

In the dimly lit stairwell, using some tools, Raven and Starfire removed a panel and saw him lying there in human form. He was alive, but unconscious again. In his hand he grasped a piece of Cyborg's mechanical leg. They pulled him out and Raven tried to revive him while Starfire kept watch over the opening, holding a large wrench as a club.

There was no sign of Cyborg or Robin.

"Has he been bitten again?" Starfire asked.

"I don't think so," Raven answered.

"I'm going in," Starfire declared.

"No," Raven insisted. "It will just get us too. Our only chance is to get help."

"Our communicators do not get the signal any longer! We can not call anyone to help us."

"That is why we get out of the tower. We take the T-Car. We get to a place where it is not able to block the signal. We call Titans East. We call Aqualad. We call **everyone** to come."

"But…"

"It's the only way," Raven said calmly. "It's the only way to help Robin. And Cyborg. We get help. And we come right back and rescue them."

Starfire sighed and didn't object.

"The only weapon that might work against this thing is some kind of a spell," Raven continued. "I need to get a book from my room. You get Beast Boy down to the T-Car."

She paused. "Promise me, Starfire, promise me that if I don't return you'll get him out of here."

"Very well," Starfire replied. "But there will be none of the 'splitting up'. We all go **together**."

Beast Boy opened his eyes and rubbed his aching head, realizing what must have happened. "Not again," he said.

They helped him to his feet, and the three of them began the climb up the stairs to Raven's room.

* * *

><p>Author's note: I wanted to finish this by Halloween, but I've still got 2 chapters to go, so it's going to run into next week. Sorry! Next up, the big scene between Beast Boy and Raven where they finally talk about things.<p> 


	7. Raven and Beast Boy

**7. Raven and Beast Boy**

"What happened in there?" Raven asked as she and Starfire helped him climb the stairs. He was still holding the piece of Cyborg's metallic leg.

He tried to think. "I flew around as a bat, making echoes, until I found something…but it was just _pieces_ of Cy…" Tears were wanting to form, and he was not going to be able to hold them back.

"He's still alive," Raven assured him. "I can still sense both of them, but they're distant."

"Did you see Robin?" Starfire asked.

"No, Star," he replied. "I remember I saw Cy and then something happened to me. I couldn't hold my form anymore and reverted. Then I fell into the hole…"

"Good thing for you that you didn't fall down the main shaft, just the access passage for the water heater," Raven said. "We searched all around, while I tried to sense a living presence, and I sensed you just on the other side of that wall."

"But where are Robin and Cyborg?" Starfire asked. "And what is it doing to them?"

"Maybe drinking their blood?" Beast Boy mumbled in horror as he vaguely recalled what had happened in his room, and he touched the place of the bite on his neck.

Starfire let out an anguished gasp.

A wave of nausea came over him, although he wasn't sure if it was from the thought or an after-effect of what had happened. "I feel sick to my stomach."

Starfire had a puzzling thought. "But…why did it not then take Beast Boy?"

"Maybe his shape shifting condition?" Raven offered.

"It did bite me," Beast Boy said. "You don't think I'll turn into one of those things, do you? I've seen a lot of movies where…"

"Don't worry," Raven assured him. "I'll drive a stake in you at the first sign of trouble."

He made a half-smile, wondering if that was one of her attempts at black humor or not.

They had reached Raven's floor and they entered the hallway.

"Do you sense that thing?" Starfire asked Raven.

"Yes. But it is not close - for the moment. Let's hurry and get what we need."

Raven opened the door to her room and they ran in. Her room was spooky even on a bright sunny day, and now - a couple hours before dawn with a real spook in the tower – it was almost unbearable for Beast Boy and Starfire. They carefully walked past her bookcases, stone gargoyles, and mysterious artifacts, expecting something to jump out at any moment.

Starfire felt something brush against her foot and she gasped, her fists glowing weakly with the beginnings of starbolts. But it was just some of Raven's dirty laundry, scattered on the floor. Housekeeping had never been Raven's main interest.

Raven produced an old fashioned key and unlocked the padlock on a wooden chest, where she kept books she considered dangerous, or that she didn't really understand.

The book that Control Freak had given Raven was open on her bedside table, and Starfire picked it up. It was open to a chapter on vampires in Germany.

"I think I'm going to hurl," Beast Boy cried, setting Cyborg's leg down on the bed and rushing for the bathroom. The toilet was in a small room, separate from the counter and sink, and he opened the lid and knelt in front of it. But he didn't vomit, and after a few moments, he leaned back.

Starfire read a passage from the book. " '_Only a woman can break his spell, pure in heart, who will offer herself to_ _Nosferatu_'."

"Wonderful," Raven deadpanned. "Any other options?"

"Wait, I am doing the reading…"

"It's more important that you keep watch at the door," Raven instructed.

Starfire took the book and went over to the door. It slid open, and she cautiously looked up and down the hall. Nothing was there. She stood in the doorway so it wouldn't close and kept watch, occasionally skimming a page in the book for something useful.

Raven took a stack of books and walked over to the bathroom to check on Beast Boy.

"Are you all right in there?"

"You know, your toilet is disgusting. It's always girls who say 'Ewww, you're bathroom isn't clean enough for me' and then, when you see theirs, it's ten times worse!"

"I'm glad you're not too sick to work your mouth." She set the books on the counter and began thumbing through the pages for what she needed.

"Aww, I didn't think you cared."

"Of course I care," she muttered, not looking up from her book.

"I _thought_ you did a couple weeks ago, but then you just stopped talking to me."

"You don't need me. You have Argent now."

"Are you kidding? You're jealous?" His eyes filled with disbelief. "I only started video chatting with her - as a friend - because you started staying in your room all the time."

She turned to look at him. "I need time to myself, Beast Boy. I can't give you attention every minute. And I've heard the way you were flirting with her. She even sent you a _gift._"

Starfire called out, "It says here that, in some legends, sunlight will destroy such supernatural creatures..."

"Okay," Beast Boy admitted. "Maybe…Maybe I was flirting with her, a little. Maybe I was mad at you for freezing up on me when I thought we were finally-"

She cut him off. "Just go. Be with Argent," she snapped. "If you really got to know me, you wouldn't want me anyway."

"Friends, you are doing the 'hurrying up', are you not?" Starfire called from her post at the door. Then she saw something moving in the dark hallway.

It was Silkie.

"Here, Silkie! Here Silkie!" she called. But Silkie didn't come, instead he scooted back down the hallway.

"I am just going to grab Silkie," she called and darted into the hallway. The door slid closed behind her.

"Damn it, Starfire!" Raven exclaimed.

She suddenly felt an intense feeling of unease. Goose bumps appeared on her exposed legs as the temperature in the room dropped.

Without a sound, a metal panel in the opposite wall was swinging open, and it was between them and the door.

Beast Boy was now standing next to Raven, and he saw it too. He grabbed her and pulled her back into the small room and slid the door shut. It locked with a tiny click.

"Can you phase us out through the wall?" he whispered in her ear.

She closed her eyes. "Azarath…Metrion…Zinthos…" she whispered.

Nothing happened.

"I don't have enough energy…Something is blocking it."

He felt panic rising. "Can you at least seal the door?"

It took several tries with her mantra before a feeble black aura appeared and encircled the edges of the door.

They heard the sounds of the room being ransacked. It was looking for something, probably them.

"Are you **sure** your subconscious isn't doing this?" Beast Boy whispered to her in desperation. "Sure there is not something that you're afraid of, that you're keeping in side?"

"Yes."

"What about _us_? Maybe you're afraid of what was happening between us?" he said, grasping at straws.

She gave him a look that would wilt flowers. "That is the stupidest…"

They heard the sounds of Raven's bed being overturned and the wooden chest being smashed. It was coming closer. Soon it would find them.

"Okay, fine, I'm afraid..." she whispered. "I'm afraid that if I let myself ...need you... you would leave me, in the end. And that I couldn't go on …"

The sounds of the room being ransacked stopped. Everything was quiet.

They both held their breath and waited.

There was no sound at all. Only the pounding of their hearts.

Raven put her ear to the door.

They waited another long minute.

"I think maybe that did it!" he whispered and reached for the lock on the door.

"Do **not **open that door yet!" she hissed, and grabbed his hand away.

Then there was a deafening boom as something hit the door, making a dent. They jumped back against the wall in the tiny room.

"That sounded like something big," Raven said.

"Do you think it can change shape because it drank my blood?" he suggested in horror.

"Quick, transform into an insect! You might be able to get out through the exhaust fan opening."

"I can't transform," he said. "And besides, I won't leave you here."

Another powerful blow struck the top of the door. The dent grew larger.

"Without our powers, we've got to find something we can use as a weapon…"

The only things in the room were the toilet, a roll of toilet paper on the rack, a box of tissues, and a cabinet on the wall. Beast Boy opened it.

"Maybe you've got something like a curling iron? Razor blades?"

Inside was only a few extra rolls of toilet paper and a wicker basket with a flip top, decorated with a couple Halloween stickers.

"What's in this?" He grabbed it.

"Nothing. Put that back."

He flipped it open and grabbed out a small squeeze tube.

"Great. It's your girl supplies and a tube of KY, which is almost empty."

She slapped the tube out of his hand. "Do you _seriously_ think a full tube would help us at this point?"

He smiled for a moment. There was no one else in the world like Raven. Good old Raven.

But the moment passed, leaving the cold reality of the situation.

They had no options.

The door took another massive blow and was buckling inward. They pressed themselves into the far corner and sat down, huddled together.

"What are we going to do?" he asked.

"There's nothing we can do," she answered.

"Maybe break the water line and cause a flood?"

"It won't work."

"Or pull out the fan and try to squeeze through the opening…?"

"Too small."

"Or..."

"This is the end," she said calmly.

He knew she was right. There was no escape. His palms were sweating, his pounding heart was up in his throat. But a stray thought entered his mind, one last thing he needed to do. Oddly, a tear welled up in his eye then slipped down his cheek.

"I love you, Raven," he whispered.

She turned to him with her own eyes wet. "I love you too… I never thought-"

She was interrupted by the next blow, which caused the door to separate from the frame and make an opening. It would collapse the next time, and she hurried to finish her last words.

"-I could..with anyone... but you made me."

He grabbed her hand and clasped it with his. "If it has to end this way, I'm glad we're together."

They sat silently and waited for the inevitable.

...

...

After several agonizing moments when nothing happened, Beast Boy stood up and pulled Raven with him.

"When it breaks though, I'll jump on it and you try to get past-" he suggested

"No," she said. "We fight it together. Together."

He nodded, just as the twisted door burst inward. A clawed hand reached in and yanked him out by the throat. He fought vigorously with his arms and legs flailing in all directions.

His foot kicked Raven in the face and she fell backward, almost losing consciousness. In a daze, she heard a familiar sound...Starbolts! She heard Starfire's voice, screaming in anger - then in pain - and then in anger again, as if a suicide charge.

As she struggled to stand and push the door out of the way, she heard a ferocious three way struggle and more starbolts. Then silence.

She emerged to see Beast Boy lying on the floor near her, and Starfire lying on the other side of the room. No sign of anything else.

She ran and knelt by Beast Boy. He was still breathing. She touched his forehead briefly in an attempt to strengthen him, and then she ran to Starfire.

Starfire did not appear to be breathing. She only lay motionless.

"Starfire!" Raven screamed. She grabbed her and attempted to empathically feel her injuries and absorb them into herself, relying on her power for regeneration.

A shudder went through Starfire's body and she was breathing again. Raven kissed her friend on the forehead and then collapsed backward from exhaustion.

But there was no time to rest. She had to get out of there, and get them out. As she got to her feet, she did feel a little of her old strength returning and the energy flowing through her.

Perhaps they had wounded it? It had retreated? Encouraged by that thought, and by her partially returning ability to use her powers to move objects, she half-dragged, half-levitated Starfire to the stairwell and then got Beast Boy.

All she had to do now was lug two injured people down over a dozen flights of stairs, in near total darkness, to the garage with the T-Car and avoid some kind of a supernatural creature, that may be wounded and even more hostile.

"Sure, nothing to it," she deadpanned.


	8. Raven

**8. Raven**

It was waiting for her.

Waiting, somewhere down there in the darkness. And deep inside, she knew it.

Raven laid the unconscious bodies of Beast Boy and Starfire on the landing of her floor of the stairs. Cautiously she peered down over the railing. In the dimness of the emergency lighting, she could see everything was clear for several floors at least.

Standing behind Beast Boy's head, she slipped her arms into his armpits and lifted his upper torso, resting the back of his head against her chest. It was difficult to focus and summon her power while doing a physical activity, but Robin had pushed her through so many drills over the years that she could manage. Levitating him as much as possible, she dragged him down one flight of stairs, his heels bumping on every step.

She set Beast Boy down, walked back up the stairs, and did the same thing for Starfire. In fact, with him in position, she decided it would be easier to take Starfire down two flights, and then do two flights with Beast Boy. Each time she set one of her friends down, she tried to heal them a little, especially since moving an injured person was not good for them.

She mused on the fact that both her friends were thin, indeed both could eat all they wanted and never gain weight (if Raven looked at a piece of cake, she gained), yet they both were extremely heavy to carry.

After several floors, sweat was dripping into her eyes and her breathing was heavy. She had to rest a moment. She had no flashlight, and didn't even have the spell book that they had risked so much to get. Would it even have helped? Starfire had somehow managed to drive the thing away…how?

Then Raven's heart stopped.

Not quite literally, perhaps, but it felt like it. She heard something moving on the stairs one floor below her.

That was where they had opened the metal panel to get Beast Boy. The sound she had heard was the sound of that heavy panel scraping against the floor as someone – some_**thing**_ – moved it a little.

It was waiting for her. Patiently waiting.

She stopped midway on the flight of stairs, while holding Starfire, and listened. She listened for a long time. No further sounds.

Teleporting was a very appealing idea right now, but she knew she couldn't manage it. Going back up the stairs was pointless. She was going to have to go past. And first she was going to have to see what was there. And then do battle with it.

As quietly as she could, she dragged Starfire to the landing and lay her down on her back, next to Beast Boy. As she knelt, she kissed Starfire on the forehead. _What I wouldn't give for you to bug me about painting our toenails and gossiping about celebrities one more time_, she thought. And how shocked Starfire would have been if she had seen this from her reserved friend.

She proceeded to kiss Beast Boy on the forehead, and then, on the mouth. At least it wasn't as clumsy as their disastrous first time. _I do love you_, she thought. _If we get though this somehow, I'll laugh at any dumb joke you tell. Well, almost any._

There was still only silence coming from the floor below her_._ From her previous experience, moving as her spirit form would be no advantage. She leaned out over the railing and peered down. The landing with the open panel looked empty, but of course, she couldn't see all of it.

She didn't hear the myriad of whispering voices as before – a good sign or a bad one? She could sense the presence, the hunger. It was close. Not sure how close.

She crept down two steps. Once she got to the mid floor landing, she'd have a clear view.

And so would it.

She took another step. Last chance to come up with a good idea.

Starfire had managed to fight it…from something she learned in that book? It sounded like that standard vampire movie hokum. Something about being pure of heart? _Not_ _quite applicable to me, being a demon princess, and all_. Something about sunlight? No sun here. And she was fresh out of wooden stakes, if that mattered.

She summoned all the energy she could, and a weak black aura formed around her hands. She reached the mid floor landing.

The landing below her was empty. The panel stood quietly, propped up against the wall. The toolbox with wrenches sat there, as did the flashlight Raven had used earlier.

But the gaping opening in the wall was what concerned her. Pitch black inside. That was where the clawed hand would reach out from.

Nonetheless, she looked around in all directions for the unexpected. Satisfied, Raven crept down the remaining steps. She stood on the landing. Nothing grabbed her…yet. She stood motionless for what felt like a year, but still nothing. Focusing all her energy into her right hand, she picked up the flashlight with her left and shone it into the opening.

Nothing but pipes and insulation.

_Oh, come on! Attack me already! You know you want to._

She eased her way right up to the opening and looked in, then stuck her whole head in and shone the flashlight everywhere. It was clear.

She was puzzled, but also feeling a bit of relief – in fact, a lot of relief – she decided to do the only thing she could. She hurried back up the stairs, hoisted Beast Boy with no levitation and dragged him down. She dragged him past the opening. She dragged him down the next flight of stair, and finally set him down.

Then she went back up, walked quickly past the opening, got Starfire and did the same thing.

She rested for a moment, panting as silently as she could. Piece of cake. She was going to be able to get them to the bottom. She let herself feel a little optimism.

Only when she was moving Beast Boy down the next flight did a disturbing thought cross her mind. _It had let her go past_. But why? Why would it do that? Perhaps because she was already doing what it wanted...

.

.

With her back aching, Raven set Beast Boy down at the bottom, next to Starfire. In front of them was the door to the garage. One of the few non-sliding doors in the tower, this one had a bar to push it open.

Raven pushed it open, and there was a nice creak to give away any possible element of surprise. She set the door stop to hold it. The cavernous garage was empty. She saw Robin's R-Cycle parked in its spot. She saw Cyborg's moveable workbenches and neat arrays of tools, as well as some of his mechanical creations. She saw the T-Car, nicely polished, and parked with the hood up.

And, of course, she couldn't see the whole garage. She couldn't see the back wall. Couldn't see the store room, or the electronics lab room in the back - which was coincidentally stocked with the minifridge, couch and TV - where the boys swore they had never watched an inappropriate movie…

Wait, why was the hood of the car up? Had Cyborg decided yesterday to maybe take some parts out for cleaning? Because now would be a really great time for that sort of thing.

Raven stepped out into the garage and looked around. At least the back wall looked clear, although there were a million things to hide behind. She shuddered. The garage was cold. Of course, it got that way from the chilly night air off the bay. But no, Raven wasn't stupid.

With her hands encased in a black aura, she carefully made her way across the long expanse of empty floor and circled the car, looking behind every workbench she passed.

She then walked to the car and peered in. It looked empty inside. She took a look at the engine. While she had assisted Cyborg on a few occasions - and that was an enjoyable pastime for them - she was no mechanic. So the best she could say was that nothing looked **obviously** wrong with it. She gently lowered the hood and set it down, unlatched.

She opened the back door as quietly as she could. Then she ran over and grabbed Beast Boy. He was still out cold. She dragged him over to the car and put him in the back seat.

When she went back for Starfire, Starfire was moaning and beginning to wake up. As Raven dragged her, it was obvious she was in some pain, but nothing could be done at the moment. She got her to the front door on the passenger side and lay her down while she opened the door.

She heard a hissing sound. Was that the wind, howling outside? No…unfortunately not. It was whispering. The whispering of many tiny voices.

She grabbed Starfire and dragged her up. Raven had to climb into the seat and pull Starfire behind her. Then Raven climbed backwards to the driver's seat. The doors were open, the hood was up, but she didn't care. Just get the engine to start and get out the garage door.

The insistent whispering voices converged into one.

"_Raven_..._Raven._.."

Not in the mood for a conversation, Raven pressed the button to open the garage door. Nothing happened. Of course, the main power was out.

It was a reinforced metal sliding door, opening vertically from the center. She couldn't move it without her powers. There was a back up generator, she dimly recalled, that powered everything in the garage. Cyborg had used it once when she was there. Then she recalled he went into the back to switch it on.

Not a good idea to go back there.

"Starfire! Starfire, I need you to wake up!"

Raven laid hands upon her and poured in all the energy she could, weakening herself. Starfire opened her eyes, but she was still in a kind of delirium.

The temperature was dropping sharply in the garage, and now a light mist was drifting along the floor.

"Starfire, I need your help!" Raven shouted.

Starfire's eyes focused on her. "Raven…" she murmured.

Raven pressed the button to start the car. Nothing happened, except words appeared in red on the center screen: NO CORE DETECTED.

What did that mean?

"Come on!" she shouted, as she hammered the button. "Come on!"

"The chip," Starfire murmured.

Raven understood. Cyborg inserted a chip, usually from himself, to control the T-Car's core systems, and link himself to the car. He must have taken it out. And now Cyborg wasn't here. This was bad. But…there were generic chips, for the rare occasions when he let someone else drive…where were they?

In the back, she remembered. In the electronics room.

She was going to have to go back there.

Summoning her power again, Raven walked to the back of the garage. There was a short hallway, with a door to the store room on one side, the electronics lab on the other and the restroom at the very back.

With nerves of steel (to outward appearances) Raven started down the hall. The door to the store room was partially open, and a cold draft seemed to emanate from there. She peeked in.

A shape was lying on the floor, a large shape. And there was a smaller one lying next to it. The large shape had a metal foot and…

Cyborg! Cyborg and Robin!

She pushed the door the rest of the way open, prepared to do battle, but nothing lunged at her. Only the bodies of her friends lying motionless on the floor.

They were still alive. Cyborg was missing most of one leg, but otherwise intact. And she noticed the bite marks on both their necks.

And, she realized, Cyborg would have the chip in his chest! She did the special motion that unlocked the compartment and grabbed it. But she couldn't leave them here.

The best plan would be…what? Think, Raven, think. Get the chip to Starfire, get the car started. Then Raven alone would drag the others out. If something got her, Starfire could shoot through the door and escape.

She ran back to the car. The driver's door was open and Starfire was sitting in the seat, but she had her head slumped against the steering wheel.

"Wake up, Starfire! Wake up!" Raven said, slapping her face lightly.

"I'm so tired," she replied as her eyes focused again.

"I know," Raven said. She leaned over her and inserted the chip. She pressed the button and the engine purred to life. She pressed the other controls, and the proton cannon raised itself from the roof.

"Listen to me, Star. If I don't come back, blast through the door and get out. Get help. Okay?"

"Okay," she replied.

Raven ran once again to the back of the garage. Mist was pouring from the hallway. She felt eyes staring at her. A cacophony of hissing voices converged into one.

"_Hello, Raven_," it hissed.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

No answer. Only the soft cacophony of whispers, mocking her.

"Show yourself!"

Nothing, except perhaps the whispers changed tone. Perhaps that was laughter.

"_We think we would like the taste of you the most_."

"Take me, then," she said. "Take me and let my friends go."

There was a long pause and then the whispers seemed to become growls. Then silence.

Raven braced for the attack, but it didn't come.

"I won't fight you," she offered. "If...if you let them go."

Again only silence.

"Do we have a deal?" she demanded, but still nothing. Not even whispering.

Tired of this, Raven forced herself to walk forward and entered the store room. Maybe it was just the rush of adrenalin, but she felt stronger. She grabbed Robin and dragged him out. Of course, she glanced around constantly, and expected to feel teeth in her neck at any moment.

They never came. She dragged Robin to the car. Half way there, she felt certain she could levitate him, and she did.

Starfire had passed out again.

"Starfire," Raven said, rousing her again with light slaps.

Raven opened the door on back door and levitated Robin into the car. She put him in the center.

Then she rushed back to the storeroom. The mist was dissipating, although she still felt a presence somewhere. Not close though. As fast as she could, she levitated Cyborg to the car and got him in the back seat.

Starfire was conscious this time, but barely. Raven led her out of the driver's seat and put her in the passenger side.

They were completely exposed. Why wasn't it attacking? It was somewhere nearby, she could feel that. She could feel the hunger. But the voices were silent and there wasn't the harsh chill.

Nothing about this made sense, but Raven jumped into the driver's seat. Aiming at the door, she fired the cannon. There was a deafening sound as the beam blasted outward the bottom half of the door and shards of metal flew everywhere.

In the clearing smoke, she saw the opening. Outside, dawn was breaking. Hitting the accelerator, she lurched the car forward and it punched through, although the cannon was torn off the roof.

Once outside, Raven raced the car down the driveway and toward water. She engaged the thruster jets so nimbly that Cyborg would have been proud, and the car skimmed the calm surface of the bay. His perfect wax job reflected the first rays of the rising sun.

She flipped on the transmitter and broadcast the emergency signal, and drove the car toward the nearest mainland hospital.

In the darkness under her seat, two small yellow eyes glowed.

THE END

* * *

><p>Author's Note: It is finished! And only a week after Halloween. I hope you liked it, and I hope it scared you a little.<p>

And the ending? It is meant to be like Alfred Hitchcock's classic film **'The Birds'**.


End file.
